DJ Disco Wiz
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
DJ Disco Wiz, (born Luis Cedeño), was born in the Bronx, New York, USA, to a Puerto Rican father and a mother from Cuba. He is also credited with being the first Latino DJ in Hip-Hop music.
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[edit] Old School
After being inspired at a Kool Herc jam by the emerging hip hop movement taking place in The Bronx DJ Disco Wiz teamed up with his best friend, Casanova Fly (Grandmaster Caz), to form a group called the Mighty Force crew. Mighty Force is credited as being one of the first Hip-Hop DJ crews in the mid-to-late 1970s. Legendary for their DJ battles in the streets of the South Bronx, the Mighty Force crew was also responsible for presenting the first Latino rapper to the world, Prince Whipper Whip, who is also of Puerto Rican decent. DJ Disco Wiz is also credited for being the first DJ to create a "mixed plate" in 1977 (Hip-Hop’s first mixed dub recording) when he and Grandmaster Caz, combined sound bites, special effects and paused beats.
[edit] New School
The grandson of the late Puerto Rican artist and Santero Norberto Cedeño; (La Mano Poderosa (1950)), Wiz is the creator of The Hip-Hop Meets Spoken Wordz Series, a hip hop and poetry performance series that gives a voice to up and coming Latino talent in New York City. As a poet, DJ Disco Wiz has performed at the Apollo Theater and the landmark Nuyorican Poets Cafe and his poetry can be seen in the upcoming book “Born in the Bronx.” Wiz is also featured in a few documentaries on Hip-Hop history including “1Love”, a film about the lives of Joe Conzo, Ernie Paniccioli and Jamel Shabazz; Hip-Hop’s first photographers.
Wiz has openly contributed to the community education of the formative years of Hip-Hop. In the millennium issue of The Source Magazine he candidly shared his experience in being the first Latino during the culture’s evolution. He was also a major contributor in the opening of the Experience Music Project in Seattle, Washington in 2000. His contribution and donation of original hip-hop flyers, solely for the preservation of hip-hop can be seen as part of the archives. He was also instrumental in the making of Jim Fricke and Charlie Ahearn’s rendition of the early years of hip-hop entitled Yes, Yes Y’all; sharing numerous original flyers and first hand accounts of the early years of hip-hop including an account of the historical New York City blackout of 1977.
He is also a board member of the Universal Federation for the Preservation of Hip Hop Culture, chaired by Afrika Bambaataa of the Universal Zulu Nation. The Federation also includes on its board; Grandmaster Caz, DJ Tony Tone, Kurtis Blow, GrandMaster Melle Mel, KRS-One, Lovebug Starski, Jorge “PopMaster Fabel” Pabon and photographer Joe Conzo.
At present time Wiz is co-authoring his memoirs with Simon & Schuster author Ivan Sanchez. The book is titled, It’s Just Begun: The Epic Journey of DJ Disco Wiz, Hip-Hop’s First Latino DJ.
[edit] Books
- Yes Yes Y'All: Oral History of Hip Hop's First Decade. Fricke, Jim and Charlie Ahearn (eds). Experience Music Project. Perseus Books Group. ISBN 0306811847
- Born in the Bronx: A Visual Record of the Early Days of Hip Hop. Joe Conzo, Johan Kugelberg, Afrika Bambaataa, Buddy Esquire and Jeff Change. (2007) - Rizzoli International Publications, Inc. ISBN 13: 978-0-7893-1540-3
- Freedom of Expression: Overzealous Copyright Bozos and Other Enemies of Creativity. Kembrew McLeod (2005) - Doubleday ISBN-13: 978-0385513258
- Hip Hop Decoded. The Black Dot (2005) - MOME Publishing Inc. ISBN 0-9772357-0-X
- Turn the Beat Around: The Secret History of Disco. Peter Shapiro (2005) - Faber & Faber ISBN-13: 978-0571211944
- Rap Music and Street Consciousness (Music in American Life). Cheryl L. Keyes (2004) - University of Illinois Press ISBN-13: 978-0252072017
- Rap Whoz Who. Steven Stancel (1996) - Schrirmer Books
- U.net, Bigger than hip hop 2006, Agenzia X, Cox 18 Books, ISBN 88-95029-02-X
[edit] Television
- VH1 Rock Docs: NY77 - The Coolest Year in Hell, 2007.
